Drugged driving on the rise

Law enforcement authorities have noticed a disturbing trend on local roadways: More and more people driving while under the influence of legal and illegal drugs.

"I have a lot of people who are surprised when I let them know they're under arrest for being under the influence. They usually tell me, 'But I have a prescription from my doctor,'" said San Bernardino County Sheriff's Hesperia Deputy Brendan Motley.

The majority of impaired driving cases still involve alcohol, according to Motley. But the California Office of Traffic Safety reports 30 percent of all drivers killed in motor vehicle crashes in the state tested positive for legal or illegal drugs — and that number has been increasing since 2006.

It's not just prescription pills and marijuana that have some officials concerned.

"I personally am starting to see people on the synthetic drugs like Spice and bath salts," said California Highway Patrol Officer Jason Costello. Costello is a trained Drug Recognition Expert for the Victorville CHP office.

Costello noted in his experience, he's seen more instances of drivers using Spice — a synthetic marijuana substitute — than bath salts.

"What's dangerous about it is that it mimics a mixture of marijuana and meth," he said.

Costello said the difficulty with arresting someone using the faux drugs is there is no definitive test for these substances like there is for prescription medications, illegal drugs and alcohol. This makes it much more difficult to prove an impaired driving case, though he did note some changes are being made in detecting the substances.

Sacramento and Orange counties recently received funding to purchase drug testing equipment, according to OTS officials.

Drug-impaired driving cases in general are difficult, according to OTS officials, because there is no established impairment level for drugs.

Both Costello and Motley agree, though, that if anyone shows signs of impairment they can be arrested.

Costello said the majority of drugged driving incidents he runs into deal with marijuana.

"What I've seen is many of the drivers I encounter have a medicinal marijuana card and they think that allows them to use it at any time," Costello said.

In June 2010, Rafael Garcia struck and killed CHP Officer Justin McGrory, 28, as McGrory was conducting a traffic stop on the right shoulder of northbound Interstate 15 south of Hodge Road. Investigators later learned Garcia was under the influence of marijuana. Garcia was charged with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, child endangerment and transportation of marijuana. He is still awaiting trial.

For Motley, the opposite is true. In his experience, he's run into more motorists driving while on prescription medications, mostly muscle relaxers.

"I usually have to point out to them their prescription bottles usually have any warnings on them," Motley said.

Whether it's prescription or not, both agree driving while under any substance which impairs a person's judgment or motor skills is dangerous and potentially fatal.

Beatriz E. Valenzuela may be reached at (760) 951-6276 or at BValenzuela@VVDailyPress.com.

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